Noise can be a major problem for transponder users.

At the 2011 Tour Down Under we experienced this first hand.

The transponder contractor had AMB pro chips and the standard decoder and loop system. The loop was set prior to the line with the trailing edge near the black line of the finish.

You could watch the noise level decrease as power was turned off to other devices in the vicinity.

The transponder technician got the best results by separating the power leads and running the AMB decoder on a separate generator. All in all it was a very frustrating time for him.

It was never attempted to move the loop further from the finish line.

This message has been edited. Last edited by: FKP,

We just returned from working at the new velodrome in Anadia Portugal.

The contractor there was using the latest generation of TAG Heuer transponders known as the RC.

Same issue as was mentioned in Australia. Similar noise levels were noticed.

The loops were installed directly on the wooden track surface. The power for all devices, computers and decoders was common.

Moving the loop further away from the finish line was not attempted either.

The technician had only received 5 RC chips as they are back ordered. The existing RCS decoder and software is used with this new smaller device.

This message has been edited. Last edited by: SportsTimingInt,

Yes noise can be a problem, even for ProChips. We had an issue at a cyclocross race where noise was causing low reads for our ProChip/ChipX system. It was working great when we set it up, but as all the stuff around the finish line got set up, the noise level went through the roof. After a significant trial and error period, we tracked the problem down to an old beat up audio amplifier. We moved the amplifier about 20 yards a way and everything went back to normal.

I can understand why the technicians didn't move the antenna away from the finish line... to do so may have cause the finish order to be wrong.